Board of Directors

Jim Ack, DVM

Jim Ack is a lifetime outdoors enthusiast whose Zen place is fishing. Originally a Ohio native, Jim fell in love with the West and is now a 27 year resident of Utah. Jim has had careers as a practicing veterinarian, a medical researcher, an executive with contract medical research and medical device companies, a veterinary practice owner and administrator, and as a business development officer for a veterinary consolidator. He enjoys spending time outdoors with his wife,son and daughter.

Lindsey Christensen-Nesbitt, Ph.D.

Dr Nesbitt is a Research Associate in the Department of Geology and Geophysics. She has served as the PMST Environmental Science Track Director since 2014. Her work focuses on mountain hydrology and how it is affected by climate and ecological change, where she uses hydrological models to conduct spatial/ temporal simulations of mountain ecosystems. Dr. Nesbitt is also a member of the Global Change and Sustainability Center (UofU). Through the U of U Biology Department, Dr. Nesbitt has taught Global Change Ecology, Global Environmental Issues, and Introduction to Environmental Science. Prior to coming to the University of Utah, Dr. Nesbitt was a Research Scientist at the Natural Resource Ecology Laboratory, Colorado State University, and a Postdoctoral Fellow at the Center for Environmental Science and Policy at Stanford University. Dr. Nesbitt received her Ph.D. in Ecology at Colorado State University.

Kirsten Allen, M.P.H.

A sixth generation Utahn, Kirsten Allen holds a BA in English from Westminster College and a Master of Public Health degree from the University of Utah. She is the literary acquisitions and development editor at Torrey House Press. Her previous professional background includes public health data analysis, college writing instruction, private piano instruction, and freelance writing and editing. She loves to travel, read, hike, and cook. She has two grown children.

Veronica Egan

Born in Cleveland Ohio, Veronica (Ronni) grew up on the shores of a dead Lake Erie. She and her siblings were not allowed near the water because of its toxicity, so the notion of a damaged environment became familiar to her at an early age. Her family moved to New Mexico in the mid 60s, and has been an advocate for the environment and its creatures all her life. Her time in New Mexico as a pack trip operator allowed her to “use her saddle as a soapbox” while enabling guests from around the world to experience some of the West’s wildest places. She served on the Boards or volunteered with no less than seven non-profit civic, animal and/or conservation groups, including Great Old Broads for Wilderness, which she eventually directed from Durango Colorado starting in 2005. In 2014 Ronni finally succumbed to the call of the canyons and moved to Teasdale, UT, where she now resides.

Scott Berry, Esq.

Scott Berry is a lifelong resident of Utah, citizen conservationist since 1973, trial attorney, Wayne County home-owner, and public lands explorer, on foot, raft, skis, and bike.

Carly Ferro, M.S

A New Jersey native, Carly moved to Utah six years ago on a whim, fell in love with the landscape and all that it affords and now dedicates herself to protecting the place she now calls home. She holds a BS in Biology and an MS in Environmental Management. Currently, Carly is a conservation organizer with the Sierra Club. Her previous professional background includes working for a land trust in Summit County and research and development for Colgate-Palmolive. When she is not working, she is usually traveling, snowboarding, playing soccer, or hiking with her best K-9 pal, Ghost

Kathy Metcalf

Kathy Metcalf, after recently comopleting her M.S. in Environmental Humanities at the University of Utah, is now overseeing design and managing acquisitions at Torrey House Press. Her previous professional background includes Art Director for Patagonia, Inc., and Designer & Marketing Director/Owner of Wingspan Design in Park City. A twenty five year resident of Utah, she was raised on the west coast which accounts for her love of the water. She and her husband Peter are longstanding conservation activists. She has three grown children, loves rivers and non-fiction, and is an avid Laser sailor, private pilot, and artist.